Method of sectionizing citrus fruit



May 16, 1967 w. c. BELK 3,319,683

METHOD OF SECTIONIZING CITRUS FRUIT Original Filed April 30, 1962 5Sheets-Sheet 1 F'IB I o 6 O 5 1 0 3 30 36 32 I A 54 13 c 52 B 200, {g 46INVINTOR WILBER G. BELK May 16, 1967 w. c. BELK 3,319,683

METHOD OF SECTIONIZING CITRUS FRUIT Original Filed April 30, 1962 5Sheets-Sheet 2? IO T1B-2 Q Z HIHEIIF" mvlNrpR VIILBER (2.52m

ATTORNEY y 967 w. c. BELK 3,319,683

METHOD OF SECTIONIZING CITRUS FRUIT Original Filed April 30, 1962 5Sheets-Sheet s O 61 v *f ea TIE ZEI INVENTOR \WLBER C. BELK ATTORNEYUnited States Patent Ofifice METHOD OF SECTIONIZING CITRUS FRUIT WilberC. Belk, Lakeland, Fla, assignor to FMC Corporation, San Jose, Calif., acorporation of Delaware Original application Apr. 30, 1962, Ser. No.190,898, now

Patent No. 3,205,926, dated Sept. 14, 1965. Divided and this applicationDec. 11, 1964, Ser. No. 425,101

3 Claims. (Cl. 146-236) This application is a division of application,Ser. No. 190,898, filed Apr. 30, 1962, now Patent No. 3,205,926.

This invention pertains to a method of sectionizing citrus fruit.

In certain grapefruit sectionizing machines the grapefruit to besectionized is held in fixed position while sectionizing blades aremoved downwardly through the fruit between each radial membrane and theadjacent meat segments. The blades are to designed and manipulated thatsubstantially all of the meat segments are separated from the membraneswhich remain attached to the core. However, in addition to the radialmembranes, the core is attached to the meat segments at the stem end ofthe fruit by string-like members and other connectors which, in somecases, prevent the meat segments from falling away from the core even ifthe segments have been separated from the radial membranes.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide animproved method for sectionizing whole peeled citrus fruit.

Another object is to provide an improved method of sectionizing citrusfruit.

Other and further features, objects and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following description taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective of a citrus fruit sectionizing machineembodying the stem end cutter of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation of the feed and transferturrets of the machine of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation of a portion of FIG. 2,particularly showing the stem end cutter of the present invention andits drive mechanism.

In FIGURES 1 and 2 one embodiment of the stem end cutter of the presentinvention is shown incorporated in a citrus fruit sectionizing machinewhich is disclosed in my pending application Ser. No. 823,107, nowPatent No. 3,105,531. Since the entire machine 10 is completelydisclosed in said patent, only those parts of the machine that have beenmodified to accommodate the stem end cutter of the present inventionwill be described in detail herein, it being understood that referencemay be had to said patent for a complete description of the constructionand operation of all mechanisms of the machine that are not described indetail herein.

In general, the machine 10 upon which the method may be carried out ismore fully disclosed in the abovementioned Patent No. 3,205,926 andcomprises a conveyor 11 on which grapefruit, which have been peeled andtreated with lye, are delivered to an operator who stands adjacent afeed turret 13. The operator removes each grapefruit from the conveyor11, places the stem end of the fruit against a positioning ring 12 of alever 14, and swings the lever down into a recess 15 (FIG. 1) in a baseplate 16 of the feed turret. With the stem end held against shifting bythe ring 13, the fruit is pivoted about the stem end to position theblossom end in alignment with a beam of light projected downwardly froma projector 18. When the beam has been directed onto the blossom end ofthe fruit, a clamp 20 is swung downwardly to lock the fruit on the plate16 of the feed turret.

3,319,683 Patented May 16, 1967 The feed turret 13 is arranged to beintermittently indexed in a clockwise direction (FIG. 1) in degreeangular increments by a drive mechanism indicated generally by referencenumeral 22 (FIG. 2). When the feed turret has been indexed twice, thefruit F (FIG. 2) comes to rest at a transfer station A immediately belowa clamp 24 carried on a transfer turret 25 which is arranged to beindexed in a counterclockwise direction (FIG. 1) about the axis of ashaft 27. Besides being rotatable, the transfer turret 25 is mounted forvertical movement due to the fact that the upper end of the turret shaft27 is connected by a bracket 30 to a vertically movable tool carrier 32which carries various fruit processing tools of the machine 10.

When a fruit is held at station A of the feed turret 13 and the transferturret 25 is lowered, a prong unit 3-4 of the clamp 24 penetrates intothe fruit and a spring arm 35 is moved into engagement with the side ofthe fruit to lock the fruit on the prong unit. A camming and latchingmechanism 36 is arranged to control the movement of each spring arm intoand out of engagement with the fruit on the prong unit 34. This cammingand latching mechanism 36 is fully described in the application of HansW. Grotewold, Ser. No. 46,662, now Patent No. 3,132,750, which isassigned to the assignee of the pres ent invention. In general thismechanism 36 comprises a hub 37 which is rotatably mounted on thetransfer turret shaft 27 and carries two cams 38 and 39. A link 41 isarranged to be periodically actuated in timed relation to the movementof the transfer turret to oscillate said cams when the turret is in itslowered position. Cam 38 engages the actuating linkage of a spring arm35 at station A to swing it into engagement with the fruit and to causea latch mechanism 43 to engage that linkage. At the same time, cam 39engages the latch mechanism 43 at station C to unlatch the spring arm 35at that station and permit the arm to swing away from the fruit.

When the spring arm 35 at station A has moved into clamping engagementwith the fruit the clamp 20 of the feed turret is released and thetransfer turret is raised, lifting the fruit away from the base plate16. When the transfer turret is next indexed through a 90 degree angularmovement, the fruit is positioned at station B (FIG. 2) above the stemend cutter 40 of the present invention which will be described in detailhereinafter. In general, the cutter 40 is a continuously rotatingcylindrical cutter that has an upwardly directed circular cutting edge.Accordingly, when the transfer turret is next lowered, the cutter 40cuts a circular cut in the lower stem end of the fruit to sever allconnections between the meat segments of the fruit and the core at thestem end.

Next, the transfer turret 25 is raised and then indexed through another90 degree increment to position the fruit at station C above a fruitcarrier 42 that is mounted on a main turret 44 (FIG. 1) of the machine.When the transfer turret is lowered, the fruit is impaled on a prongtypespindle 46 disposed centrally in a fruit clamping mechanism 47. At thispoint the spring arm 35, which is hearing against the side of the fruit,is released by the cam 39 and a hold-down member 51, that is carried bythe tool carrier 32, is moved down into engagement with the top of thefruit and holds it on the spindle 46 while the transfer turret israised, thus completing the transfer of the fruit from the transferturret 25 to the main turret 44.

The main turret 44 is arranged to be rotated clockwise (FIG. 1) tosuccessively position each fruit carried in a fruit carrier 42 below aseries of processing tools including four heads 50 (two only beingshown) which carry sectionizing blades, a stripper mechanism 52, and acore removal unit 54.' Each tool is arranged to engage the fruit andperform a particular operation thereon as the tool carrier 32 islowered. In particular, it should be noted that each head 50 carries aplurality of sectionizing blades which penetrate into the upper end ofthe fruit and.work their way downwardly between each meat segment of thefruit and its enclosing membranes to separate the segments from themembranes. After the fruit has been subjected to the action of thestripper 52, the segments of the fruit have been effectively separatedfrom the core, and the segments drop onto a discharge conveyor 56 whichcarries them to a collection station.

As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the stem and cutter 40 of the presentinvention comprises a tubular support member 60 which is secured bycapscrews 61 to a fixed plate 62 that is connected to the supportstructure 64 of the machine by a suitable bracket. A drive shaft 67 isjournalled for rotation in the tubular member 60 and carries acylindrical cutter 69 at its upper end. The cutter, which is setscrewedto shaft 67 has a sharpened, generally circular, upwardly projecting,notched cutting edge. A deflector 72 is locked on shaft 67 between awasher 73 and a set collar 75. A shield 77, which is formed as part of acylinder, is secured around the cutter on the upper end of the tubularsupport member 60 by means of a setscrew 79 that is threaded through acollar 80 welded to a base plate 81 of the shield, said plate having adrain aperture therein.

The cutter is driven by an electric motor 85 which may be energized fromany suitable source of electric power and is supported from the fixedplate 62 by four posts 87. During operation of the machine the motor 85is continuously in operation to continuously rotate the cutter 40.

As previously mentioned, when the fruit is carried downwardly at stationB, the fruit is moved into engagement with the cutter 40. This cuttershould be about 1 inch in diameter and should be positioned so that itpenetrates into the fruit about /2 inch when the transfer turret is atthe bottom of its downward movement.

Heretofore the meat segments of the fruit have been separated from thecore, either by the manual manipulation of a sectionizing blade or by amachine but, in each case, cuts have been made into the fruit from oneend of the fruit only. Accordingly, a violet shaking or stripping actionat the end of the sectionizing operation was relied upon to break looseany connections between the other end of the fruit and the core. Thepresent invention provides a new, improved method of sectionizing whichcomprises the steps of making a circular cut in one end of the fruitaround the core to cut the connections of the meat segments to the coreat that end, and then entering the opposite end of the fruit andprogressively separating each meat segment from its adjacent membrane.As each segment is separated from its two enclosing membranes, it willdrop away from the core since all connections to the core have beenbroken.

Further, the stem end cutter and the associated mechanisms of themachine, including the sectionizing heads 50 provide an effectivemechanism for carrying out this method which, of course, could becarried out by the manual manipulation of a suitable cutter and asectionizing blade.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire toprotect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a method of sectionizing a whole peeled citrus fruit the steps ofmaking a circular cut in the stem end of the fruit in an area encirclingthe core to sever connections at the stem end between the meat segmentsof the fruit and the core, and engaging each meat segment at the blossomend of the fruit and forcing the segment away from the adjacentmembranes, the separation between membrane and the segment taking placeprogressively from the blossom end to the stem end of the fruit.

2. In a method of sectionizing a whole peeled citrus fruit, the steps ofmaking a circular cut approximately one-half inch deep and approximatelyone inch in diameter in one end of the fruit in an area encircling thecore to sever connections at that end between the core and the meatsegments of the fruit, and engaging each meat segment at the oppositeend of the fruit and forcing the segment away from the enclosingmembrane, the separation between the membrane and the segment takingplace progressively from said opposite end to said one end.

3. In a method of sectionizing peeled citrus fruit, the steps of makinga cut in one end of the fruit encircling the core and only partiallythrough the fruit to sever connections at that end between the core andthe meat segments of the fruit, and engaging each meat segment of thefruit at the opposite end of the fruit and separating the meat segmentfrom the membrane, said separation taking place progressively from saidopposite end to said one end.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,549,333 4/1951Polk et al. 146236 W. G. ABERCROMBIE, Assistant Examiner.

WILLIAM W. DYER, JR., Primary Examiner.

1. IN A METHOD OF SECTIONIZING A WHOLE PEELED CITRUS FRUIT THE STEPS OFMAKING A CIRCULAR CUT IN THE STEM END OF THE FRUIT IN AN AREA ENCIRCLINGTHE CORE TO SEVER CONNECTIONS AT THE STEM END BETWEEN THE MEAT SEGMENTSOF THE FRUIT AND THE CORE, AND ENGAGING EACH MEAT SEGMENT AT THE BLOSSOMEND OF THE FRUIT AND FORCING THE SEGMENT AWAY FROM THE ADJACENTMEMBRANES, THE SEPARATION BETWEEN MEMBRANE AND THE SEGMENT TAKING PLACEPROGRESSIVELY FROM THE BLOSSOM END TO THE STEM END OF THE FRUIT.